Influence of hospice use on hospital inpatient mortality: a state-level analysis.

This study tests the hypothesis that high hospice enrollment is associated with lower Medicare inpatient mortality. The results show that Medicare inpatient mortality in a state can be explained by hospice enrollment and a host of demographic and market environment variables. An increase in hospice population by 100 individuals is associated with a reduction of 28 inpatient deaths, ceteris paribus. The results suggest, among other things, that opportunities exist for greater expansion of hospice capacity in low-use states to reduce deaths in the expensive hospital setting and improve the quality of end-of-life care for terminally ill patients.